Wrestling: Healthy Sonny Armstrong takes step forward (With Video)

That mind is always working, always dutifully taking note of what others might dismiss as unnecessary or simply miss. During football season, the Interboro junior linebacker and fullback will write out notecards full of tips and tricks on that week's opponent and call out plays just by the formation.

When his body failed him and he sustained a back injury last year, he was relegated to wearing a big, bulky back brace while taking everything in. Armstrong qualified for the Class AAA District One-South tournament as a freshman 171-pounder, but instead of making a run at improving that, he had to idly stand by and keep taking those notes as his older brother, three-time All-Delco Wayne, made his second straight trip to the state tournament.

So when Sonny Armstrong came up holding his lower back against Glen Mills' Israel Crane in the 182-pound final of the Del Val League Tournament Saturday at Academy Park, there was reason to be concerned, but after the long road it took for him to get back to this point, Armstrong wasn't about to let a crack at starting the postseason off right slip away. He sealed that with a 4-2 win over Crane to punch his ticket to the Class AAA District One-East tournament next week at Hatboro-Horsham and to highlight a five-winner day for the Bucs in the league tournament, which takes the place of the old sectional tournaments.

"I just had to do some physical therapy, some stuff to get back," said Armstrong, who set a career high with his 25th win of the season. "I didn't want to go out on the mat and get hurt and then I can't wrestle for the rest of my career. My doctors helped me out a lot with the physical therapy. They kept me motivated and I knew I had goals and I knew I was going to have to take these little steps to get everything back and do what I wanted to do."

It took some time, especially after he started the season sporting some of the extra football weight and wrestling at 220 pounds. But he whittled his way down and ultimately settled on 182 pounds, a decision that seems to fit him well. Against Crane, he flashed improved first-step quickness while still possessing the strength to hold off Crane. That combination will make him a tough out for anyone with visions of postseason glory at 182 pounds.

"I feel a lot (more) comfortable," Armstrong said. "I feel more in shape, I feel a lot more agile, I can work a lot better at 182 than 195."

So how does inscribing his name in Del Val history feel?

"It feels like I have a long way to go," Armstrong said. "This is just the start. I have bigger goals and this is where I've got to take little steps going up to it. This is where I want to be."

Abner Thompson's high school career hasn't exactly gone according to plan.

Few people, let alone wrestlers, can say they've attended four high schools in a four-year career. But his itinerary featured stops at Upper Darby, Cardinal O'Hara and Interboro before settling in at Academy Park this year. He has blossomed under John Basile's tutelage and claimed the inaugural 160-pound title by virtue of his 10-3 win over Chichester's Justin Major in the final.

"Every time, I thought about this day," Thompson said. "Last year, me losing in regionals, I'm just trying to get back and hopefully get back and finish what I did."

Bouncing around from school to school took a toll on Thompson, but he's carved out a niche for himself and he's developed into one of the area's top 160-pounders. Custody issues between his parents meant that he was being pulled in different directions, a toll that could have derailed his efforts to join wrestling's elite, but he's doing just fine.

"It definitely did (mess things up)," Thompson said. "You meet new friends, then you leave them and get to a new school. Nobody knows anything about you. But that just basically pushed me harder. ... Me being as good as I am right now, it definitely came from different schools and going against different wrestlers."

Penn Wood All-Delco Karon Lucas-Tillery (195) claimed both the top spot and the Most Outstanding Wrestler award, while Glen Mills had Yansy Abreu (106) and Shawn Croyle (170) rounded out the group of winners. The top three wrestlers from every weight class advanced to next week's District One-East tournament at Hatboro-Horsham.